


A Beatrix Bushwhack

by Brumeier



Series: Bite Sized Fic 2018 [43]
Category: The Three Investigators | Die drei ??? - Various Authors, The Trixie Belden Mysteries - Julie Campbell Tatham & Kathryn Kenny
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Family Feels, Gay Male Character, Gay Panic, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Prompt Fill, Surprises
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-07
Updated: 2018-08-07
Packaged: 2019-06-23 10:13:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,581
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15604068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brumeier/pseuds/Brumeier
Summary: LJ Comment Fic for Domestic Bliss prompt:Any, any, Out-of-town guests prompt a cleaning frenzyIn which Trixie surprises Mart and Mart goes into panic mode.





	A Beatrix Bushwhack

**Author's Note:**

  * For [vanillafluffy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/vanillafluffy/gifts).



Mart’s internal clock woke him before dawn, as it always did, even though he technically had the day off. His bedroom was still full of shadows, the blinds drawn to keep out the sun which had yet to rise. He loved those early morning moments, the birds just starting their songs outside, the horses whickering from the pastures. And Dan snuffling into his pillow on the other side of the bed.

Dan only stayed on the nights he wasn’t working. He was renting a little place in Springman and Mart went there when he could, but the ranch took up most of his free time.

Mart turned on his side and looked at his…well, they hadn’t really quantified what they were. Boyfriends? Lovers? Partners? There really wasn’t a good word for it. Friends, first and foremost. The sex was still pretty new. Mart had experimented some in college, of course, taking that opportunity to make sure he wasn’t confused about his sexuality. But it was different with Dan. More intimate, more pleasurable, more profound in a way he couldn’t really explain.

“Creepy,” Dan muttered. He fumbled with one hand, eyes still closed, until he found Mart’s face and gave him a gentle shove. “Stop staring at me.”

“Stop looking endearing while you sleep, and I might consider it,” Mart replied. 

Dan cracked one eye open at that. “Not endearing. Ruggedly handsome.”

“The very picture of masculinity,” Mart said agreeably.

“Idiot.” Dan huffed out a breath and tugged Mart closer. “You have to go?”

“No. I have a couple things to check on but not till later.”

In one smooth movement that belied Dan’s sleepy tone, he rolled on top of Mart, a big grin on his face. “Good.”

Friends with benefits, absolutely.

*o*o*o*

Mart had been in the stables talking to the vet about routine check-ups for the trail horses when he was called down to the main house. It was the dog days of summer and the air was hot and heavy, an almost palpable weight. Most of the guests were staying in their air-conditioned rooms or spending time in the pool, rather than riding or working with the horses. He didn’t blame them. He felt like he was suffocating.

The main house served as the registration desk, restaurant, and health club of the ranch. The visitors stayed in guest cabins but could frequently be found there lounging by the big fireplace or enjoying a good meal or a massage.

“There a problem, Bonnie?” Mart asked the girl behind the desk. “Or were you just missing my handsome countenance?”

Bonnie was in her forties, and she was the queen of Guest Services. She knew everything about every guest that came to the ranch, where they were at any given time, and how best to tailor their visit to their individual needs. Bonnie was the gold standard Mart aspired toward.

“I don’t need you, honey,” Bonnie replied wryly. “She does.”

Mart turned to look where Bonnie was pointing and was immediately attacked by a small, curly-headed linebacker that nearly took him off his feet.

“Trixie??”

“Surprise!” Trixie released Mart from the rib-cracking hug and danced back. “I’ve been dying to see your ranch and I had a few days free and so here we are!”

“We?”

It was only then Mart noticed the guy standing behind his sister. He was tall and stocky, dark-haired and dressed in slacks and a vintage-looking bowling shirt that had _Berto_ stitched across left front pocket.

Trixie linked arms with the guy, beaming up at him. “This is Jupe. My boyfriend.”

Mart was more than familiar with his sister in the throes of puppy love. He’d seen it plenty of times, mostly directed at a certain red-headed member of the Bob-Whites. But the look she was giving the new guy was totally different. No harmless crush this. Luckily for him, the new guy was looking at Mart’s sister in an equally rapturous way.

“Pleasure to make your acquaintance,” Jupe said, holding out his hand. He had a firm, confident handshake.

“I can’t wait to see everything,” Trixie enthused. “Especially the horses. I miss riding. Jupe isn’t really a fan.”

“I’m not an equine enthusiast,” the guy admitted.

Mart just nodded, panic building up in the back of his head. Dan was still at Mart’s place, waiting for him to come back. They’d had plans for the rest of the day – naked plans – and Mart was a little resentful at Trixie for springing a visit on him, even as glad as he was to see her.

“Hello? Earth to Mart!” Trixie snapped her fingers in front of his face and Mart shook himself out of his reverie.

“Sorry. I can take you to your cabin. Bonnie?”

“They’re in number seven,” Bonnie replied, handing Mart the key.

Mart helped with their luggage, though there wasn’t much of it because Trixie knew how to pack light, and promised he’d come back in about an hour to take them on a grand tour.

“You’ll want to freshen up a bit, I presume,” he said.

“Well, I don’t think –”

“Great. See you in a few.”

Mart practically ran back to his place, bursting through the door to find Dan sitting at the kitchen table in his underwear, his service weapon in pieces so he could clean it. He looked up when Mart came in, a smile already on his face.

“Good timing! Let me just put this back together, and then I can work on taking _you_ apart.”

Mart groaned. He wanted that, he wanted that a lot, but the clock was ticking.

“Hurry up and put that away. We have to hide this stuff.” He dodged around the cabin grabbing everything that was Dan’s and tossing it on the bed. 

“Not to be critical,” Dan said, leaning back in his chair. “But what the hell are you doing?”

“Trixie’s here. She thought she’d surprise me with an unplanned visit, which of course couldn’t come at a worse time. I’m giving her and her new boyfriend a tour in less than an hour and she’s going to want to come over here and see where I live, and is your toothbrush in the bathroom?”

Mart went to check, scooping up Dan’s toothbrush, his extra razor, and his shampoo from out of the shower. He couldn’t put them in the medicine cabinet, that was the first place Trixie would snoop. He turned to leave the bathroom, hands full, but Dan was blocking the way.

He really looked good, too, without most of his clothes on. Shoot! Should he pull Dan’s clothes out of the closet? Would Trixie notice?

“Okay. Did I miss a memo? Are you kicking me out?” Dan’s tone was light, but Mart could see the concern in his eyes.

“No, nothing like that. It’s just…she’ll know you’ve been staying here.”

“And that’s a problem because?”

“Because…because…” Mart let out a breath and looked at Dan’s things in his hands. “I don’t know.”

Dan put a hand on Mart’s shoulder, squeezing. “She knows you’re gay. You came out to the whole family, remember?”

“I know.” Mart dropped his head on Dan’s shoulder and Dan pulled him in for a one-armed hug. “I don’t know what came over me. I just went into panic mode.”

“Are you embarrassed? Of us?”

“What? No!” Mart stepped back so he could return Dan’s things back to their proper places in the bathroom. “It’s not that. I think…I think it’s that I’ve never been out with my family in person. They never had to actually _see_ the gay.”

Dan’s expression softened, and he reeled Mart in for a kiss. Mart felt himself settle, just a little. He knew he was being unreasonable, but he was the only gay Belden. It was one thing for his family to accept that long-distance, another entirely to experience it up close and personal.

Soon enough, under Dan’s gentle ministrations, Mart forgot his worry and lost himself in the kiss and the feeling of Dan’s arms around him. He was exactly where he wanted to be, with the person he most wanted to be with, and maybe he needed to cut himself – and his family – a little slack. 

A sniffling sound caught Mart’s attention and he pulled back enough to look over Dan’s shoulder.

“The door was open,” Trixie said, swiping at a wayward tear. “I didn’t mean to pry. Just, you two look so great together. So happy.”

Dan slid through the bathroom door and stood behind Mart, who could feel Dan’s arousal pressing against his ass.

“Hey, Trixie.”

“Hey yourself, Dan. It’s nice to, um, see you again.”

Mart laughed. “If you don’t want to see even more of him, you better go.”

“Right. Jupe and I will just…go see some horses. Take your time, Mart.” Trixie winked, a blush staining her cheeks, and closed the door behind her as she left.

“I’m not gonna lie,” Dan said. “That was a little disturbing.”

Mart walked over to the bed and swept everything he’s tossed on there to the floor. He’d put it all away later. “I believe you verbalized an interest in disassembling me? Metaphorically, of course.”

Dan stalked toward him, a predatory grin on his face. He already had his thumbs hooked in the waistband of his underwear, ready to push them off.

“Let’s get our gay on,” he said.

Mart was laughing as he got tackled on the bed.

**Author's Note:**

>  **AN:** Vanillafluffy’s amazing Trixie/Three Investigators fics are so good and she’s been inspiring me to explore that fandom a little more myself. It’s such a small fandom we basically just write these things for each other. LOL!


End file.
